House of the Sacred Flame
by SonicGirl2002
Summary: I X'ed everyone else who came to my house after that. Until one day, two boys came over to play. One with hair of dripping blood, the other fire, and both with glittering emerald jewels for eyes. And they became my friends too. (Based on the game 'The Witch's House'. RATED HIGH T FOR POSSIBLE VIOLENCE/GORE. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK.)
1. The House in the Woods

**So because I have a medal for my amazing procrastination skills (why am I so proud of that?), I have gotten practically no work done on We All Fall Dead :3 Instead, this thing came out... Get over it xD I needed to put up something, okay?!**

**Now then, this story is based off of the RPG Indie Horror game _The Witch's House_. Not everything will be the same, for obvious reasons, but the plots will resemble one another, obviously. I freakin loved Witch's House, so I'm really excited to watch this story unfold! Of course that means if you've played or seen someone play the game, you'll have a pretty good idea of what goes down when. **

**I think thats really al I have to say for now. So, without further ado, the first chapter!**

**DISCLAIMER: ****I do not own Asch, Luke, or The Witch's House. Damn. Because if I did, holy snap hat dragon attack it would be the best thing ever. Yeah. **

**WARNING:**** Contains some violence/gore, not extremely graphic, but it's there. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK.**

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House of the Sacred Flame

Chapter 1

_The House in the Woods_

He felt someone shaking his shoulder persistently, roughly rousing him to consciousness. Slowly, his eyes blinked open, seeing a blurred image of red and peach. The boy blinked harder, forcefully squeezing his eyes shut and opening them again. Now there was green dotting the blur, and it began to take a much clearer shape; a face. "Asch…? Asch, can you hear me?" Asch groaned softly, lifting a heavy-feeling hand to scrub at his eyes. "You're awake!"

"Yeah," he mumbled. "What the hell happened?" He dropped his hand and carefully pushed himself up into a sitting position, turning his head to meet his replica's gaze. Luke shrugged helplessly, looking around the small clearing they currently resided in.

"I don't know… I don't remember why we came here, or how, or even coming here at all…" Asch looked around as well, taking in the woodsy area surrounding them. The clearing wasn't very big at all; pretty small, actually. They were boxed in by trees on all sides, with the exception of a dirt road running North and South through the grass. The two redheads currently sat under a large, blossoming tree, the lush grass overgrown, up to their elbows. A sign post was hammered into the ground just off the path, a mere few feet away. Asch nudged Luke's shoulder, pointing it out to him. The replica nodded his understanding, getting to his feet and reaching down to help the other boy up. Once they were both steady on their feet, they strode over to the wooden sign, examining it carefully.

The words looked as if they were carved into the wood, not written onto it. At the top, it read, '….'s House' with an arrow pointing North, the first word too illegible to make out. At the bottom, 'Out of the woods' was etched in, along with an arrow to the South. "Someone actually lives out here?"

"Looks like it," Asch replied. "But this place gives me a bad feeling. I say we get out of here."

"No arguments there."

The look-alikes stepped onto the dirt, quickly trekking down the path. As they walked towards the exit of the woods, Asch noticed that, as they went further and further, the amount of roses lining the narrow road increased drastically. _'Rosebushes aren't a wild plant…'_ he mused to himself. _'Why are there so many of them out here?'_ "Whoa…" Luke breathed beside him, and Asch looked up, his emerald orbs widening when he saw what had his copy so amazed. A startlingly huge path of bright, blood red roses rested on the path before them, blocking the way out.

"What the hell…?"

"A-Are we stuck here?" Luke asked, stepping closer to his original. This place was dark and dreary; he didn't want to stay here! Asch placed his hand on the younger's arm, offering him a small amount of comfort.

"We aren't stuck here," he assured. "We'll cut our way through." He reached for his blade, settled in its sheath at his side, but all his hand grasped was air. Eyes widening once more in alarm, Asch whipped his head down, seeing the belt strapped around his waist completely barren, devoid of both sword and sheath. "Where the hell did-?!"

"Mine's gone too!" The original redhead swiveled his head, seeing that, sure enough, Luke's waist lacked his weapon as well.

"Where are they?!"

"I don't know! Maybe we left them by the tree back in the clearing?"

"No way. We wouldn't just forget our weapons!" Asch would've noticed the sudden lack of weight at his side; no, they must have disappeared at some point before he woke up. "Did you see anything before I came to?"

"No, I wasn't even awake much longer than you were!" Luke insisted. The darker redhead groaned in annoyance, rubbing the bridge of his nose. Oh how freaking perfect this all was. "Well…maybe we can use Fonic Artes to get through?" Asch hummed; maybe that could work… Instinctively, he tried to draw in the fonons around him, but found he was unable to. He sighed heavily.

"I can't."

"What?"

"Something's interfering with the fonons in the air. I can't gather them the way I need to."

Luke's shoulders drooped. Honestly, where the hell were they? He couldn't think of any place on Auldrant that fit the description of this place, and he didn't know who in their right mind would want to live out here.

"…Hey," the replica piped up again. "Remember the sign? Someone else lives here, maybe they can help us out."

"Not a bad idea," Asch mused. "There isn't much else we can do…" With one last look at the tangled mess of roses, he turned on his heel and walked back the way they'd come. "Come on, there's nothing here." Luke obediently followed behind the older boy, but paused in his steps when he saw something shining in his peripheral vision. Curious, he stepped off the dirt road, carefully making his way towards it.

"Luke!" He jumped at the call of his name, turning his head to see Asch up ahead, glaring at him. "What are you doing?!"

"I found something!" He called back, darting into the brush. Asch's heart leapt into his throat as the smaller boy abruptly left his view, his feet instantly shooting towards where he'd just been standing.

"Luke! Luke, you idiot, get back out here!" No reply was given to his call, and Asch grit his teeth, tearing into the trees, screaming his replica's name. "Luke! _Luke!_"

"Asch!" The redhead spun around, trying to decipher which direction the shout had come from, when the boy in question suddenly came running into view. Asch heaved a sigh of relief, holding his arms out to catch the other as he came stumbling to a stop.

"You freaking idiot! What the hell is wrong with you?!"

"Asch, look! Look what I found!" Luke beamed proudly as he held up the small, rusted machete he'd discovered on the ground. Asch picked up the small tool, examining it closely. It definitely was not in top condition, but it may serve to be useful later. He handed it back to the younger redhead, who tucked it securely into his belt.

"Just wait for me next time, okay? We don't know what's out here." Luke nodded, obediently following along at Asch's heels as the older started back for the path.

"Hey, Asch? Think we can use this to cut through that rosebush?" Asch hummed thoughtfully.

"It might. Let's give it a shot."

They hurried back over to the barricade of flowers, and Luke produced the machete from his belt. Carefully, he took hold of one of the blooms and sliced the stem. Nothing happened. Literally, nothing. There wasn't even the slightest nick left behind. Stunned, Luke hacked at the stem again and again, going as far as to try others, but the result remained constant. If there was a way to cut through these roses, it wasn't like this.

– X – 

"I just don't get how that was possible…" Luke mumbled as he and his original headed back into the clearing. "Even if the machete wasn't strong enough the cut off the stem, it didn't even scratch it!"

"There's something strange going on here," Asch agreed. "And whether we like it or not, we're stuck in it." He gazed down the road ahead of them. Somewhere beyond this point, there was someone else in these woods. And it was starting to look like whoever it was, was their only hope.

As they reentered the clearing, they both froze in their steps, staring at the end of the path. Yet another patch of roses sat in their way. "Seriously?" Luke deadpanned, and Asch touched his chin in thought.

"Roses aren't flowers grown in the wild… So why are so many out here?" he asked aloud, voicing his earlier train of thought.

"Well, someone does live out here, remember? Maybe they planted them." Asch was shaking his head before his isofon even finished speaking.

"But why would they plant rosebushes so far away? And I doubt any gardener could get them to be an uncuttable tangled mass." The younger tilted his head curiously as he examined the bush.

"…Well, this one looks a lot smaller than the last." Asch blinked, realizing Luke was right. This patch of roses was a lot smaller and thinner than the unmanageable mass of stems and weeds they encountered earlier. "Do you think the machete will work on those? That's the way to whoever lives here's house, after all."

"Try it." Luke nodded, scurrying forward. He once again took hold of one of the stems, and sliced it with the small knife. The plant fell to piece easily, and Luke grinned, quickly hacking away at the bush and soon having the path clear enough to walk through.

"Asch! It worked! Come on!" The redhead strode towards his replica, and the two wandered through the mess of disembodied stems and petals, continuing along the path.

Not long after that point, they found the house.

For one, it wasn't much of a house. More like a small mansion. It towered far above their heads, dusty red tiling on the roof, eerie gray bricks for the walls. Several gothic-style windows were scattered throughout the brickwork, and there was a wooden balcony at the very top. A large, dark brown mahogany door sat directly in the center, dark and foreboding. The whole building just seeped of uneasiness, the logical part of Asch's brain screaming at him to turn back. But there was nowhere else to go, not with those roses in the way.

"We're… going in there, aren't we?" Luke said quietly from beside him, and Asch shrugged.

"We don't have any other option, really. It's not like we can leave." Luke swallowed thickly, instinctively reaching for Asch's hand. His original complied, gripping his hand tightly. "Don't worry, it'll be alright. I won't leave you alone in here."

"I know you won't." Giving the younger a firm nod, Asch turned back to the house. Taking in a deep breath and giving the other's hand a squeeze, he stepped forward, tugging Luke behind him, and entered the house.

The door slammed shut behind them, leaving the woods shrouded in complete and utter silence.

– X – 

The interior of the house greatly resembled the exterior. The gray bricks carried over to the inside, as did the windows, but they were pretty high, and the twins couldn't see out of them. A pale red carpet was on the ground, making the monotonous _thud thud thud _of their boots soft and barely audible. The strange thing was, the house looked so huge from the outside, but the room they walked into was so small. Small enough so that if they were to each stretch out opposite arms, they would be mere fingertips away from touching the walls. A single door, identical to the one they'd just came through, stood in front of them, the only thing decorating the room. Asch shook his head slowly.

"This is not sitting well in my stomach."

"But we don't have a choice," Luke protested quietly. "We need to at least find something better to cut down those roses before we head back outside." Asch sighed. He knew that was true, but he had a horrible, sick feeling in the pit of his stomach, and it wasn't just from the intimidating look of the place. He had a legitimate bad feeling, as if something was warning him not to go further. 'I'm being stupid,' he decided. 'I'm letting this place get to me; I have to stay strong for Luke.'

"You're right," the older boy said. "I guess that means we go through this door." He cautiously approached the door, the younger trailing behind him, and pushed it open. The room was dark, save for one candle on the wall across from the entrance. Stuck on the wall beside the flickering light was a small piece of paper. The room practically screamed 'don't go in', but Asch stepped in anyway. Something was up with this house, and he didn't trust it one bit, but they had no other choice. Besides, worst came to worst they'd turn and high-tail it out of there.

Slowly, carefully, he stepped further in, hearing Luke's boots thud softly in time with his own behind him. Asch had made it halfway across the room, eyes squinted to read the note on the wall, when suddenly... "_Asch wait!" _He froze instantly, his foot balancing in mid-air as he obeyed the frantic call of his replica and stopped. Luke let loose an audible breath of relief. "Okay, put your feet together, and step to the side." Again, he obeyed, letting his heel fall back to its original position and slowly stepped sideways, straining his ears in the silence in order to be instantly alerted should Luke try to tell him something again. When Asch stopped a few steps over, and his isofon stayed quiet, he turned to look at him. Luke was watching him, nodding when their gazes locked. "You're okay." Curious as to what caused the sudden uproar, the darker redhead tilted his head to stare at where he'd previously been standing. One step in front of the spot was a crimson red patch on the floor, glistening where it caught the light.

_'I almost stepped in that…'_

"Th-That's…" Luke stuttered, carefully making his way over to his original. "That's blood, isn't it…?" Swallowing thickly, Asch nodded.

"I think so."

"You almost stepped in it… I panicked. I didn't want you to…"

"I know. It's okay, I'm glad you stopped me. I don't fancy bloodying my boots for nothing." Strolling forward, wearily avoiding the blood puddle, Asch glanced at the note. Written on it in dripping fresh black ink, were four simple words.

_COME TO MY ROOM_

He frowned in confusion, taking the paper off the wall. "That's it," he muttered, turning it over in his fingers. "That's all it says."

"But, this is the only room in the house, so it seems," Luke pointed out. "There aren't any other doors in this room…" Asch shook his head.

"Something isn't right here," he said, crumpling the note and dropping it carelessly on the floor. "Come on, we're getting the hell out of here." The younger nodded vigorously. This place gave him the creeps; he'd rather wander aimlessly through the woods than stay in here. Watching out for the blood puddle once more, the twins darted from the room, rushing through the opened doorway. But once they stepped back through, they discovered…

The house had changed.

Now, they stood in a long hallway, the walls and carpeting identical to that of the original room they'd entered. But whereas it had been a small space with a single door previously, it was now a large space with two doors on either wall, and the front door on the wall in front of them. Candles were in holders on the walls, the flames swaying curiously, filling the area with their soft glow. A table sat beneath each of them, each holding a large vase of lavender and white flowers. _'None of this stuff was there when we first walked in…'_ Luke realized. '_The room had been completely barren!'_

"This is impossible…!" Asch said through gritted teeth. "How can it have just…changed?"

"Asch, I'm scared," the replica admitted quietly. He didn't care if he sounded like a wuss; he wanted to get the hell away from this house. "Please, can we just leave? Can we not investigate?" The older boy nodded.

"Let's go. There's got to be another way out of the woods. And if there's not, we'll make one. Come on." He lead the way back to the front door, his replica following, twisting the knob and pulling back.

The door didn't budge.

Blinking in shock, Asch gave the knob another sharp tug. Still, the wooden barrier refused to be jostled. His skin prickling with disbelief, the redhead tugged frantically on the door, even going as far as throwing his weight against it and having Luke push and pull with him. But no matter what technique they tried or how much force they used, the door would not open. It may as well have been a doorknob sticking out of a wall.

A nervous sweat had broken out across Luke's forehead, his heart beating rapidly in his chest. He stared at his original's face, the latter staring down at the door handle. "A-Asch…" The boy slowly turned his head to meet the other's gaze, and shook his head.

"It's probably not going to open."

His heartbeat sped up even more, and Luke clutched his hands to his chest. "What are we going to do…?" he asked quietly. Asch didn't move, his voice expressionless as he answered.

"The only thing we can do. We have to go forward."

"Y-You mean through the house?! No way, we can't! This place… It's not safe, Asch!"

"I know." The original sighed, finally turning to face his replica. "But standing here praying this door will suddenly open isn't going to get us anywhere. We need to at least look for another way out." He shifted position, gazing from one end of the hallway to the other. "There are more doors now. That means there are more rooms too. Maybe one of them leads back outside." Luke was still not convinced, and Asch placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's our only option right now, Luke. Everything will be fine. Trust me, okay?"

Green eyes met green eyes, one pair wide with childish fear, the other narrowed with determination. Slowly, Luke nodded. He trusted Asch. He wouldn't let anything bad happen to him. But even still, he reached out one of his hands, and his look-alike quickly stretched one of his own out. Their fingers linked together, and Luke instantly felt better, feeling Asch's warmth beside him.

They both turned, standing shoulder to shoulder, hands intertwined, and stepped away from the door.

As their backs were now to it, they failed to see the doorknob fall to the ground, the carpet silencing the sound of impact. The door they'd used to enter the house was now nothing more than a picture painted on the wall.

– X – 

**WRONG END 1:1**

He cautiously approached the door, the younger trailing behind him, and pushed it open. The room was dark, save for one candle on the wall across from the entrance. Stuck on the wall beside the flickering light was a small piece of paper. The room practically screamed 'don't go in', but Asch stepped in anyway. Something was up with this house, and he didn't trust it one bit, but they had no other choice. Besides, worst came to worst they'd turn and high-tail it out of there.

Slowly, carefully, he stepped further in, hearing Luke's boots thud softly in time with his own behind him. Asch had made it halfway across the room, eyes squinted to read the note on the wall, when suddenly... "_Asch wait!" _He had already lifted his foot to take the next step, Luke's sharp yell causing him to stumble in surprise, and instinctively, his foot dropped to balance himself. A wet squishing sound was heard, and Asch looked down to see he had stepped in a puddle of a crimson, glistening liquid. 'What the-' And then there was a click, and suddenly, the walls of the room shot forward.

The last thing Asch saw was his replica, emerald eyes wide, mouth open as if to scream something, and then the world went dark.

**What Just Happened? 1:1**

By stepping in the blood puddle on the ground, Asch activated a hidden switch/button, which in turn caused the walls of the room to close in on themselves, crushing the two in the process. May be the most common way for newbies to the game to get their first Game Over.

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**(EDIT: So I got a review a few days ago saying that the original ending to this chapter was too graphic for T. I really didn't think it was that big a deal, but I figured, okay, I can work with you on that. So I won't make the wrong ends as detailed as I originally intended, and will outright explain each wrong end after its respective one.)**

**Anyway, since this is based off a game, I decided to add in the wrong ends to show what would happen if Asch and Luke had done something differently. Mostly because there are some epic wrong ends I would love to write, cause I'm a sick freak :3 but aren't we all? So yeah, those will always be at the ends of chapters, or maybe in the chapters following if there are many wrong ends. And each chapter will be a certain room. **

**And I'm pretty sure thats all there is to say for now! So review, favorite, and follow (which I recommend in case the rating ends up changing, just saying) and see you guys next time! Hope you enjoyed and thanks for reading!**

**Later!**

**Valerie(SonicGirl2002)**


	2. Three's A Crowd

**So I got a review on Chapter 1 saying my author's notes were too long, roughly four-hundred words I think? Well, for one, where else should I put author's notes for my stories? There really aren't any other places to put them. So for now they will remain here. Also, the chapters by themselves range from two thousand to four thousand words...so really, four-hundred words for two author's notes isn't really that bad. But because I'm such a nice person (cough cough okay self cough) I took it into consideration and will try to make them shorter.**

**Take what you get, my lovelies. Because if wishes were horses, beggars would ride.**

**Yeah, I just went there. Snap.**

**DISCLAIMER: ****I do not own Asch, Luke, or The Witch's House. Damn. Because if I did, holy snap hat dragon attack it would be the best thing ever. Yeah. **

**WARNING:**** Contains some violence/gore, not extremely graphic, but it's there. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK.**

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House of the Sacred Flame

Chapter 2

_Three's A Crowd_

The two redheads stood in the middle of the room, gazing from one hallway to the other. "…Which way should we go…?" Luke asked finally, gazing at his original. Asch looked between their choices again, trying to ration out some kind of reasonable explanation, but all he drew were blanks. This was going to be a lucky guess, a game of chance; there was no right or wrong. Just do or don't.

"I don't know," he said finally, and Luke's hand tightened in his.

"Well…when nothing goes right…go left?" the younger boy offered, and Asch raised his eyebrow.

"You want to base this decision off a dumb quote you heard?"

"Do you have a better idea?"

"Left it is, then." The twins walked over to the hallway on the left, Asch leading the way and tugging Luke behind him. The passage broke out into a room with dark tiled floors and the same dull-colored brick walls. It was mostly empty, save for a metal table in one corner, a wooden dresser in another, and a door on the West wall. The darker redhead examined the room from his spot near the entrance. There didn't seem to be anything particularly-

"Asch?" He looked over as he heard his name. "On that table over there, something's on it." Asch turned his attention to the mentioned table. Sure enough, resting in the corner of it, was a small, dark object.

"Stay close," Asch ordered, and his replica obediently nodded. Stepping carefully, they made their way over to the table. Thankfully, there were no more tricks on the floor, at least none they encountered on the short trek across the room. The ground looked like it was made of stainless steel. It reflected the little light that illuminated the room, and their shoes made soft little clinking sounds as they walked. Upon reaching the table, Asch carefully leaned forward and examined the dark object.

"They're scissors."

"Scissors?" Luke repeated. "Maybe we can use them to cut those roses once we get back outside." The original nodded slowly.

"It's worth a shot," he agreed, picking the cutting tool up in his hand. "Come on, we still need to find a way out of here." Luke nodded, and the two started back the way they'd come. But they'd barely taken two steps before Asch's arm suddenly jerked back, his fingers coming loose of Luke's. The replica felt fear shoot through him, instantly thinking the worst and whirling around, ready to jump to his isofon's aid. He let out a sigh of relief when all he found was a winded Asch on the ground, eyes wide in surprise.

"Are you okay?" Luke asked, crouching beside the toppled redhead. The latter nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine…" he mumbled. _'But what the hell made me fall…?' _

Luke rested a hand on the other's shoulder, rubbing it gently as he collected himself while searching around on the floor. There were no cracks or bumps; the floor was smooth and glassy. So why had Asch fallen? He'd been fine when they walked towards the table… His eyes landed on said table, seeing something black hanging over the edge of it. Curiously, he reached for it and ran his fingers along it slowly. It was cold to the touch, felt rusty and old, leaving behind flecks of black residue on his fingers. He gave it an experimental tug, and heard a clinking sound.

"Watch it!" Asch suddenly snapped, and Luke started, turning his head to stare at his original.

"What?"

"These things are open; you almost cut me!" Luke's eyes fell to the scissors, then went back up to the chain and followed it downwards. Sure enough, his gaze came to a stop at the object in the older's hand.

"So that's what happened…" he mused, and Asch looked up at him.

"Huh?"

"The scissors. They're chained to the table. That's why you fell; the chain resisted." Asch turned his head, seeing the chain too and understanding Luke's reasoning. He got to his feet and set the scissors back on the table.

"I guess those are useless to us, then," he said, and the younger nodded.

"Looks like it. But there's another door over here, lets check it out." They turned their attention to the door, making their way towards it. Asch grabbed the knob and turned it, but the door didn't budge.

"It's locked."

"This one too?" Luke murmured. "Are all the other doors locked? What if there's no way out?"

"Hey, calm down," Asch said, taking his replica's hand again. "There's a whole other hallway we can still check out, so let's not jump to conclusions, okay?" Luke nodded slowly, allowing Asch to lead him back into the main room and down the other hallway.

This time, the hallway opened up into a much narrower space, branching off in two directions. One lead forward, presumably into another room, while the other path was a new hallway leading to a different section of the house. Peeking down it revealed a large grandfather clock resting against the wall at the end, but any other doorways or paths from that point on, they couldn't see.

Asch looked over to Luke, letting him decide again. The younger chewed his lip thoughtfully, gazing down the path in front of them. "…This way," he said finally, pointing ahead of them. Asch nodded, and they hurried forward.

As expected, the hall opened up into a new room, this one devoid of doors, not counting the one they'd entered from. It was nothing special, really; even blander than the one with the scissors. The walls were a bright, spotless white, the carpet on the floor replaced with light brown wooden planks. In the center of the room was a woven basket, and sitting inside it…

"Is that a teddy bear…?" Asch asked incredulously, and Luke nodded, a small smile on his lips.

"I wouldn't picture a teddy bear being a part of this creepy house…" he said lightly, moving forward to examine it. It was a medium-sized bear, with light brown fur and a black cloth nose, two black marbles for eyes. It looked pretty adorable!

While Luke busied himself with fawning over the teddy bear, Asch looked around the room, spying the note on the wall. Heading over to it, he found it was another short message, just like the last one.

_BEARS IN THE BASKET_

_'Bears in the basket…? What could that mean…?' _Asch thought, reaching up to peel the note off the wall, but the call of his name halted his fingers.

"Asch?" He looked at his replica over his shoulder. "I think we should go check that other hallway. There's nothing else here." He nodded, his hand dropping back to his side as he pivoted and headed back to his look-alike, the note forgotten.

They left the bear room, walking back out into the narrowed space and turning down the new hall. Luke had taken Asch's hand again as they strode along, stopping in front of the grandfather clock. "It's ticking," Asch observed. "Time's still marching on. That means we aren't stuck here."

"How does it mean that?"

"If time still moves forward, that means this is still reality. Which means we can get out of here, whether we find a door or break a window." The older redhead tugged on the other's arm. "Come on, let's go."

There was a door to the right of the clock, and Asch checked the knob, finding it unlocked. Pushing it open, they stepped inside, gazing around the room. Unlike the rest of the house they'd seen so far, this room was darker in color, clad in reds and pinks. A plush, crimson carpet was spread across the floor, the walls a dusty salmon pink. There was a large desk off to one side, a vase of bright, blooming flowers and an unlit desk lamp atop it, along with a single book, opened up and revealing its white pages. In the corner was a small cupboard, decorated with pale pink ribbons, and in the corner opposite was a large pile of various packages, the wrapping covering them ripped. Propped up on the very top of the pile was another teddy bear.

"What's up with these teddy bears?" Asch wondered aloud as he followed the smaller redhead over to the stacks of boxes, consisting of emptied, torn presents and empty cookie tins. The latter picked up the stuffed bear. It looked similar to the one in the previous room, save for it being a little smaller and darker in color. "I never would've imagined stuffed animals in a creepy place like this."

"Well, someone does live here, remember?" Luke pointed out. "Or at least, someone used to. Otherwise who would've made that sign and planted all those roses?"

"I don't think those roses were all planted in a giant cluster. If that was the case, they wouldn't have grown as much as they did."

"What are you suggesting then; magic?" Asch rolled his eyes, swatting lightly at his replica.

"Don't be ridiculous." He turned to investigate more of the room, then paused. "…Hey," he called over his shoulder. "Bring that bear with you."

"Huh?" Luke said in confusion, pausing in his action of setting the bear back down. "Why?"

"Because I said so," was the only answer Asch gave before heading further into the room. Luke shrugged, but picked the fluffy bear back up in his arms and turned to follow. Suddenly, there was a crashing sound from behind him, and the redhead jumped, quickly darting towards the other occupant of the room. Asch in turn started when Luke suddenly jumped at him, whirling around. The younger boy ducked behind him, peering over his shoulder.

One of the cookie tins had tumbled off the pile, causing the stack to collapse in on itself, the crashing noise a result of the metal containers coming into contact with each other.

"You just knocked it over," Asch explained, reaching behind him to wrap an arm around the boy using him as a shield, said boy shaking like a leaf. "It's alright, see? Nothing happened." Luke nodded, still clinging to his original tightly, the teddy bear smushed between the two. He felt the arm around him tighten, and a hand pat his back soothingly. "I just want to check this room out a bit more and then we can get out of here, okay?" Luke nodded, keeping his arms tight around Asch's torso. The older sighed, but made no move to push him off, and awkwardly made his way over to the cupboard.

He gripped the handle and tried to tug it open, but, surprise surprise, it didn't budge. Asch sighed; why the hell was everything locked in this damn house? His emerald eyes examined the cabinet, seeing something carved into the wood.

_Open when the house returns to normal._

The redhead blinked. What could that possibly mean? He shook his head; he'd worry about that later. For now, he had to get Luke out of this room.

But not before he took a peek at that book.

With Luke still holding onto him, Asch made his way over to the desk. Sure enough, scribbled in dried ink across the white parchment was what appeared to be a diary entry.

_They thought I was different,_

_So no one played with me._

_My father and mother didn't love me._

"That's so sad…" Luke murmured, as he too read the diary. "It must hurt, feeling like your parents don't love you." He froze as soon as the words left his mouth, peering up at the boy he was clutching onto. Asch's face was blank, his emerald eyes dull as he stared at the pages. "…Asch, I didn't-"

"Don't," Asch said quietly, shaking his head. "Just…don't. It's fine, I know what you meant."

"But-"

"There's nothing else to check in here," the original cut in again. "Let's get out of here." He turned on his heel, Luke moving with him, and they walked out the door.

– X –

Asch didn't speak on the way back to the bear room. Luke felt horribly guilty; he should've known better than to make such a comment. Surely it had reminded his original of the day he went back to Baticul, only to find his friends and family all fawning over the replica Luke. The last thing he wanted was Asch to be upset him. They were trapped in here together, and if he didn't have Asch to turn to… That thought scared him. He clutched tighter onto his original's tabard, and felt a rush of relief when he tightened the arm around him in return.

Once they'd walked back into the room, Luke finally spoke up. "Why are we here? Why did you want me to keep the teddy bear?" He held up the stuffed animal still in his arms. Asch pointed to the note still taped to the wall.

"Go read that." Raising an eyebrow in confusion, the younger redhead complied, strolling across the room to the piece of paper.

"It says 'bears in the basket'."

"Exactly." Asch came up behind him. "I think these notes are supposed to be like instructions. They're meant to help us figure out what to do. 'Bears in the basket' might mean we have to find all these stuffed bears and put them in that basket, just like it says."

"Do you really think that's it?"

"I have no idea," he admitted, frowning. What kind of twisted bastard sat around planning these kinds of things? "But we've got nothing else to try. Worst comes to worst, nothing happens."

So Luke went back over to the woven basket with the bear already stuffed inside. He took the one in his arms and tried to set it inside. He shoved and pushed and squeezed, but it was no use. "It won't fit inside." Asch came over and tried as well, getting the same results.

"It's the limbs," the darker redhead observed. "They're too big to fit into the space, and the other bear won't budge. It's like that one's sewed in."

"Well, if the arms and legs make it too big, then what if we just got rid of them?" Asch hummed thoughtfully. That was a perfectly logical idea, only…

"How would we do that? The fabric and stuffing is too thick to just rip them off." Now it was Luke's turn to be thoughtful. His face lit up as he came to a realization.

"The scissors!" he concluded. "The one's chained to the table in the other room! Maybe we can just cut the arms and legs off. That still counts as putting the bear in the basket, right?" Asch thought it over, then slowly nodded.

"That just might work. Let's try it." He ruffled his replica's hair fondly. "Good thinking, Luke." Said redhead beamed proudly, glad to have Asch back and talking to him.

Maybe there would be hope after all.

– X –

"Alright, hold it for me."

"Okay." Luke held the bear by its torso, keeping it over the table so it would be easier for Asch to cut with the chained scissors. The latter gripped one of the stuffed animal's arms, pulling it taut as he positioned the blades of the cutting tool into place. Carefully, he squeezed his fingers together, snipping off the limb with little hassle. They both stood still, as if waiting for something to happen, but nothing did. So, slowly and steadily, Asch cut off the rest of the bear's appendages. "Hmm. Easy enough."

"It was just cutting apart a stuffed bear, Luke," Asch said lightly, leaving the severed limbs on the table. They wouldn't need them anymore. He started back to the hall, the younger redhead at his heels.

"Well yeah, but this house is so creepy I-… _Agh!_" The darker redhead whipped around again, seeing Luke a few steps behind him, hands clasped to his chest and his eyes wide with fear.

"What?" he demanded. "What is it?" In response, Luke pointed a shaky finger down to the floor. Bringing his gaze downward revealed the teddy bear torso the replica had previously been carrying, but the fabric was stained red where the limbs used to be.

"I-I…touched it…" Luke whispered. "It touched my finger; it was wet, and sticky… Asch, that's _blood_… The bear is _bleeding_…"

"Calm down, Luke," Asch murmured, stepping over the bleeding bag of stuffing to rest his hands on the younger boy's shoulder. "Remember what we've seen so far? Whoever lives here is just trying to screw with us. It's going to be okay; we're going to get out of here just fine, understand?" Slowly, Luke nodded. "Come on, say it."

"W-We're… We're going to get out of here," he repeated shakily. "And we're going to be just fine."

"Good. Now believe that, okay?" Asch gave his shoulders a soft squeeze before stepping back, turning and bending down to pick up the discarded bear, careful to avoid the red liquid leaking from where the stuffing should be. "Let's just get back to that room and test out my theory. And if that doesn't work we can burn this thing and break our way out." Again Luke nodded, and following his original's lead, and they exited the room, only leaving a puddle of drying blood behind.

– X –

"Okay," Asch mused, standing in front of the woven basket once more. "Let's try this again." Still ever aware of the sticky liquid seeping from its 'wounds', the redhead stuffed the torso into the basket. It still involved some squeezing and shoving, but it went in, the limbless teddy bear looking rather cozy beside the other.

"So…that's it?" Luke called from the doorway, and Asch shrugged.

"I guess. I mean, it went in."

"But what hap-" His sentence cut off when they both suddenly heard a clicking sound, like that of a door being unlocked. "…What was that?"

"I have no idea." The original strode forward, walking back out into the hallway. "Let's go find out." They headed back to the first room they'd entered, everything looking the same as the last time they'd walked through.

"Maybe it was the front door unlocking?" Luke suggested hopefully. The other redhead shrugged; a good a guess as any. He started for the front door, when suddenly, one of the vases resting on the tables fell to the ground and shattered. The sound practically echoed in the otherwise dead silent room, and both boys jumped.

"It's okay," Asch called over his shoulder. "The vase just fell over…"

"But…how? We aren't anywhere near it…" The older one just shook his head, not wanting to worry about that for now. He just wanted to find out which of these damned doors had unlocked, and hoped it lead back outside. Cautiously, he slid his foot forward again. Nothing. Releasing a soft breath, Asch started walking forward again.

And then, from the hall across the room, an object that Asch could only describe as a giant teddy bear – yes, _a giant teddy bear_ – burst free of the space and was suddenly stomping towards them. Behind him, Luke let out a frightened yelp of surprise, and Asch let loose a curse before whirling around and taking off. He grabbed his replica by the arm and ran back down the way they'd come, skidding around the corner and back up the way leading to the diary room. He slammed the door once they got in, collapsing against it. Luke fell into a sitting position beside him, shaking like a leaf from the sudden adrenaline spike in his system.

"Wh-what the hell was that…?!" Asch just shook his head.

"No clue… But from what I saw… It looked like a huge teddy bear…"

"I-It attacked us…"

"…I know."

"Asch… What's wrong with this place…?"

To that, Asch had no answer.

– X –

**WRONG END 1:2**

Cautiously, he slid his foot forward again. Nothing. Releasing a soft breath, Asch started walking forward again.

And then, from the hall across the room, an object that Asch could only describe as a giant teddy bear – yes, _a giant teddy bear_ – burst free of the space and was suddenly stomping towards them. Behind him, Luke let out a frightened yelp of surprise, and Asch let loose a curse before whirling around. He was just a second too late, and suddenly the bear was upon him. The remaining redhead could only watch as his original was crushed beneath the giant, then turned so fast he stumbled over his feet, racing for the hallway they'd just exited. He skidded around the corner and back up the way leading to the diary room. Slamming the door and collapsing against it once he got in, Luke fell into a sitting position, shaking like a leaf from the sudden adrenaline spike in his system.

Then he wondered to himself why he'd bothered to escape, because now he had to figure out what to do next all by himself.

**What Just Happened? 1:2**

**When attempting to get to the door and check to see if it was unlocked, Asch is ambushed by a giant teddy bear. He doesn't escape fast enough, and is crushed to death by the bear. Luke flees back down the hall and manages to survive the attack, but now wishes he'd stay put because he realizes he now must face the house alone.**

**If the player chooses to re-read the note on the wall in the bear room after placing the limbless bear in the basket, the writing is replaced with dots. This can mean that the house is shocked at what lengths the player is willing to go to. Based on this, it is said that the giant teddy bear that attacks at this point in the game is a third bear getting revenge on the player for cutting off the limbs of the second bear. In order to escape this Game Over, all you must do is leave the room alive. When you re-enter the main room, the bear is gone. It does not attack twice.**

* * *

**This chapter took a longer amount of time, I know... But I lost inspiration to write for a while, but then I got it back! Though I did kinda just rush through th ending, because I wanted to get this done. So here you go! And hey, look - no graphic gore this time! So calm down guys, I listened for once!**

**Thanks for reading, and as always, please review, favorite, and follow! See you guys next time!**

**Peace!**

**Valerie(SonicGirl2002)**


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